Swimming mitt



.lume 5, 1923.

W. A. RUDDELL SWIMMING MITT 2 Sheeizs-Sheet l gwvenfo'c Filed July l2,

hf. H. Ruddu .Hung 5, 1923. 1,4575

W. A. RUDDELL SWIMMINGMITT Filed July l2. 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 M.. Raza/meu.

Patented inne 5, i923.

traitant WILLIAM ALBERT RUDDELL, OF ASBURK PARK,

SWIMMING MITT.

Application filed July 12,

To all whoml t may concern:

Be it known that I, `WILLIAM A. RUnDnLL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Asbury Park, in the county of Monmouth and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements' in Swimming Mitts, of which the following 1s a specification.

This invention relates to improvements 1n swimming mitts, and has as its primary object to provide a mitt which may be easily and cheaply manufactured and sold at arelatively low cost and by the use of which a swimmer may, with less exertion, perform more eectively swimming strokes than is ordinarily possible.

Another object of the invention 1s to provide a swimming mitt so constructed that it will present a maximum surface area in the making of a stroke but will offer minimum resistance to passage through the water on a return stroke.

Another object of the invention is to provide a swimming mitt which will prove especially useful to beginners and, by reason of the particular fastening means provided for holding the mitt upon the hand, will inspire confidence as the securing means is of such a nature as not to be liable to become accidentally disarranged and therefore there is little or no likelihood of the mitt being lost from the hand.

In the accompanying drawings:

Egure l is a perspective view of the mitt embodying the invention applied to the hand;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view through the mitt;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the mitt removed;

Fig. 4 is a detail transverse sectional view taken substantially on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3 looking inthe direction indicated by the arrows.

The mitt embodying the invention comprises a body 1 having a palm portion 2 and a back 3, these two portions being cut from cloth of any suitable kind or from any other suitable material and being substantially of obovate form. A binding tape 4 is applied over the marginal edges of the palm and 1922, serial no, 574,455.

back portions of the mitt and secured by a line ofl stitching 5 which is runthrough the tape and through the registering marginal portions. i

ln order to form the finger stalls of the mitt, which stalls are indicated by the numeral 6, a plurality of pairs of lines of stitching 7 are run through the palm and back portions of the mitt and the lines of each pair extend inwardly from the bound margin of the article and in relatively converging relation, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3 of the drawings. Therefore not only do the lines of stitching 7 define finger and thumb stalls 6, but they also define between them web portions 8 which, when the fingers of the hand to which the mitt is applied are spread open, will span the space between the fingers and thus afford an adequate resistance area or surface when the hand is making a swimming stroke. Of course, on the back stroke the fingers may be brought substantiallv together and the hand turned, in the usual manner to such position as to substantially feather the water so that practically no more resistance is offered to the back stroke through the water than if the mitt were not present upon the hand. However, as stated, when the hand is making a propelling stroke, the webs 8 will afford an adequate resistance area or surface so as to render the stroke more effective and thus enable the swimmer to more readily propel himself through the water and also more readily sustain himself while swimming.

Being of the obovate form previously described the mitt is somewhat contracted at one end and this is the end which fits about the wrist of the wearer, this portion of the palm and back members of the mitt being formed with a hem, indicated by the numeral 9, through which a draw string 10 is passed and is adapted to be tied about the wrist.

It is also preferable that a wrist band 11 be arranged within the wrist end of the body of the mitt and this band may be secured in place by the same line of stitching l2 which closes the hem 9. The wrist band 1l is adapted to be drawn more or less snugly about the wrist through the medium of a draw string 18 which is threaded back and `forth through eyelets 14 secured in the wrist band.

While the mitt could be retained upon the handby the use of either ot' the draw strings .l0 or totheexelusion ofthe other,` the employment of two draw strings presents the advantage that the wearer is inspired Y with more Confidence whenboth strings are l 1o tied about the wristand has less fear of the mitt becoming lost fromy the hand.

While it is not essential that theinitt be water-proof, the cloth material of which it is 'ormedmay, desired, be treated with a water-proofing composition as, for example,

a solution of paralin in gasoline' and which solution may be applied in any suitable manner to the material of whichl the palm and back portions are formed and at any suitable time in the process of manufacture.

Isaid end of the covering` may be closed about thewrist, av wrist band within the `said end of the covering, and means independent of the draw string whereby the wrist bandl may be closed about the wrist.

In testimony whereof I affix my Signature. WILLIAM ALBERT RUDDELL. A[L. 8.] 

